Double Double Oil and Trouble

” Eye of newt, and toe of frog, Wool of bat, and tongue of dog, “

This recipe seemed to work for Shakespeare since Macbeth is one of the most sought after parts for an actor to portray.

It might have been easier for me to extract the eye of a newt ( just reach up at night behind any picture on the wall and you’ll find one ), or the toe of a frog. We have those too. The wool of a bat? A little trickier but possible. Sorry, I draw the line at tongue of dog since mine sleep next to me in the bed and short of the 8 million buckaroos Leona Helmsley bequeathed hers, are family emeritus.

So any of those things might have been easier than getting reacquainted with oil paints after many many many years.

I’ve been using acrylics for the past several years but have been feeling the pull towards oils for the exact opposite characteristics they possess. I had taken a plein air workshop here a few months ago, was the only acrylic painter among the oil painters and felt this siren of mediums taunting me.

I’m now outfitted in paints, brushes, knives and mediums, learning to embrace the fragrance ( fumes ) of the turps again and the very smells are taking me back many decades to classes at Parsons School of Design where I took my first courses in art.

I’ve tried to keep it loose and gestural to get the feel of the softness of the paint and the different application that’s required. I wasn’t going for replication.

The switch from acrylic to oils is like this:

You’ve been a shepard your entire life and now, you’re going to herd cats……. Have mercy on me and offer up some gentle yet helpful advice/suggestions/quotes/something!!!!

I’m laying myself open here, I realize but hey, when you live here, this is the rule you get to live by and I’m sticking with it: